


You Are Being Watched

by aconfederacyofscript



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-13
Updated: 2015-03-13
Packaged: 2018-03-17 16:40:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3536585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aconfederacyofscript/pseuds/aconfederacyofscript
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Person of Interest AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Good morning, Skye. The Machine gave us a new number,” May says as soon as Skye walks into the library. She doesn’t bother taking off her jacket. She just checks her gun and sticks it in the waistband of her pants again. She smiles when Bear gets up from his basket and presses his wet nose against her hand.

“Who is it?” she asks while scratching him behind his ear. Frankly, she was mostly here because of the dog first, the action second.

May smirks a little and moves to the glass board that has little bits and pieces of tape on them. She sticks a new photograph on it. The woman has a wide smile. She’s pretty, early twenties, with medium-length curly hair and honest eyes. Interesting thing is that she’s wearing a tie, Skye finds it peculiar.

“Jemma Simmons. She is a biochemist at S.H.I.E.L.D, known for her work on the alien DNA sequences after the Battle of New York and progress within that new field of science.”

“I’ve seen her face on television. She’s booming. What’s your guess? Victim or perpetrator?”

“That’s why I hired you, miss Skye. I’ve already sent mister Triplett in this morning to poke around the Research Division. You might want to check out her apartment to look for any irregularities.”

“I’ll be on my way.” Skye nods and puts an earpiece in her ear to establish communication with May.

“Oh and Skye?”

“Yeah?”

“Please try not to shoot things.”

She laughs and salutes. “I’ll try.”

“So what else do we know about her, May?” Skye asks, picking the lock of the New York City apartment. “Because she looks loaded. This is quite the apartment.”

It is big, almost too big for a twenty-five year old scientist. It’s clean, squeaky clean. There aren’t folders anywhere, there are no dishes in the sink, the fridge is pretty much empty and the books on the shelves are alphabetically organised. There are two people in a frame on a cabinet somewhere; Skye assumes it’s her parents. She snaps some pictures with her phone and walks over to the window. The building across would give them a good view of pretty much the entire apartment.

“She’s originally from Sheffield in the United Kingdom, but transferred to the S.H.I.E.L.D. academy when she was seventeen.”

“What about her parents?”

“They stayed in the UK with her older sister Kate. Simmons graduated the Academy three years early because of outstanding results.”

“Looks like we’ve got a genius on our hands then,” Skye mumbles, tracing her fingers over the table. “There’s little here. Just photographs of her parents and probably her sister Kate. They have the same eyes. What is her social life here? Does she have a boyfriend? Trip?”

“Sup, Skye.”

“Hey, found anything?”

“She spends most of her time in the lab with a guy; I’m sending you a photo right now.”

Her phone beeps and she fishes it out of her pocket. “Who’s the guy?”

“Leopold Fitz. Engineer. They went to the Academy together. It appears that they are simply best friends, often referred by the name of FitzSimmons together,” May says and Skye draws her eyebrows up.

“That’s cute. Do you think he’s involved? He might be jealous of sorts. She has an extra PhD and she is doing impressive work for the government, making name for herself. Maybe he wanted to be in her position, outrunning her in the race of becoming head of the Research Division eventually?”

“I don’t think so, Skye,” Trip says, “they seem to be working just fine as partners. They bicker a lot, but that doesn’t seem to be about more than science.”

“Partners?”

“Yeah, like in the lab.”

“So maybe this Fitz-guy wanted more, he’s in love with her but she doesn’t want to be with him because they are best friends. He can’t handle that and decides to plan an attack?”

“I’ll do some more digging into their relationship, maybe I can figure out what they are to each other,” May says, “if you’d go over to the division, Skye. It seems that they require a technician to repair a broken server.”

“You do know how to put my skills to work, don’t you, May,” Skye laughs, “I’m on my way. The apartment looks fine. She’s tidy, she’s organised, and she loves science fiction and Harry Potter. I also found a Dr. Who box set, but nothing out of the ordinary. I think she’s just pursuing answers.”

Skye clips her ID-card to her blouse and makes sure her gun is hidden under her shirt. If she would be poking around, she might as well do it prepared. They don’t know when the attack happens, after all.

Her phone beeps and she taps her ear. “Yeah?”

“We have an extra number. Leopold Fitz’s number has come up, too. They either are in some sort of trouble together, or your assumptions about mister Fitz were correct.”

“Let’s hope not. Or she’s being screwed over by her best friend,” Trip joins in and Skye rolls her eyes.

“Wouldn’t be the first time happening. Where do I need to be, May?”

“I’ve sent the information to your device.”

It beeps. Her ID-card tells her she’s currently working as Skye Johnson. It was one of her many aliases, but this was the one they usually went with if she went undercover as an IT-specialist.

The lab is on the first floor, so she scans her card at the entrance and takes the elevator up.

“Miss Johnson,” Trip says in the elevator, smiling his dazzling smile at her.

“Mister Triplett. I didn’t think we’d meet so soon already.”

“If you keep your eye on Simmons, I’ll be shadowing Fitz. If his number is up it might be in our best interest to split up,” Trip says and Skye nods.

“And here I thought I would be stuck with you all day,” Skye says and playfully punches his shoulder. The elevator pings and she gets off, holding the door with her hand. “Be careful, alright. We’re dealing with alien DNA and Chitauri materials here. I wouldn’t want you to grow a second head.”

“It’d just be too much funk for you to handle, darling. Fitz is in the lab with Simmons now, I’m just gonna take a look around.”

Skye snorts and lets go of the door, taking a left to the labs. There are plenty. She sees researchers in white lab coats, there are endless amounts of vials and instruments, machines that hum lightly, different kinds of lights, labs that aren’t open for business today it seems. The space is all very open, which concerns Skye slightly.

The windows look out over the city. Skye also doesn’t like windows. Too open. Too much space. And then she spots them.

“They are bickering again,” Skye says and grins. They can hear them already. The door to their lab is open and even though she’s still half a hallway apart from them, their voices drift through the air.

Simmons sounds irritated, and Fitz just sounds hysterical. His hands are in his sides like a pregnant woman and every now and then he rubs his forehead before scribbling things on a glass board again with a white marker. It doesn’t take long before Simmons’ British accent drifts to her, forming the words ‘no, that’s all wrong – it can’t be like that’. She takes the marker from him and scribbles down some other things Skye doesn’t understand even if she tried.

“We’re dealing with ancient DNA material, Fitz. It’s impossible to apply standard science rules to them. I can’t use half my equipment and I’m on a deadline, quite frankly we both are on a deadline because you should be finishing that laser for me.”

Before Skye knocks she force pairs Jemma’s phone. They both look up, their faces melting immediately. “Hello?”

“Hi. I’m here to fix your broken server?”

“Oh! Fantastic. Yes, this way, please!” Jemma snaps off her black gloves and waves her over. “Sorry, what did you say your name was?”

“Skye Johnson, but call me Skye. Nice to meet you…” Skye pretends to look at Jemma’s ID-badge. “Jemma Simmons.”

“Likewise. So, I don’t know what exactly happened, but I was running some tests. Like regular tests, not outer-space tests and my computer here froze up, taking down half of the system on this floor.”

Jemma just points to the desktop computer that is indeed frozen over. With a few clicks of her mouse and the keyboard she accesses the interface and links the computer to May’s at the Library.

“Thank you,” it sounds in her ear. “I’ll restart the servers in a minute.”

Trip interrupts the rest of what May was saying. “Skye, we’ve got company. I suggest we get out of here right now. There are five armoured men on the way to the lab. Do you have eyes on Fitz?”

Skye stands up and raises her hands when Jemma wants to say something. “I don’t.”

“Who are you talking to?”

Glass shatters around them when bullets fly and Skye drags Jemma to the floor with her. “You were right, Trip. I suggest we get out of here. What’s your status?”

“I’m locating Fitz. You make sure you get out of there with Simmons and we can meet back at the safe house.”

“Copy. May, who are these people?”

“I’m not entirely sure yet. Please get out of there safely. I’ll be waiting for you at the safe house.”

The line with May stays silent while bullets still put holes in the wall above them.

“Stay behind me. Do as I say if you want to get out of here alive, alright?” Skye says to Jemma, who just looks at her with pure terror in her eyes. Her lips tremble and tears pool in her eyes. But she nods. She nods, so she understands.

Skye peeks over the edge of the desk and spots four armed men. Perfect. That means she’ll have more weapons when she is done with them.

“Stay down,” Skye says, taking the gun from her waist band and getting up in the same motion as firing her gun four times. Perfect shots. The men collapse on the floor with disheartening grunts, but it doesn’t affect Skye so much anymore.

“Okay, let’s go.”

Jemma takes her extended hand and allows Skye to steer her to the hallway. On the way Skye picks up one of the heavy rifles and sticks another gun in her boot.

“What’s the quickest way out? Either an emergency exit to a garage or a side entrance that is hard to find.”

“There’s an emergency corridor. It’s in the east corner of the building.”

“Then that’s where we’re going. Stairs, move.”

Jemma nods and takes a deep breath before what looks like pushing aside her fear and motioning Skye into a hallway.

“Give me a gun,” Jemma says with quivering voice and Skye raises an eyebrow at her.

“Now why would I do that?”

“I’m not going to shoot you. I know how to use it. I work for S.H.I.E.L.D. It’s mandatory training ever since the Battle of New York. Give me a gun; I can help.”

Skye realises it’s not the time to argue, knowing very well that Jemma is the victim in this very situation. So she hands her the gun that she put in her boot. Jemma loads it and takes a deep breath.

“Steady heartbeat is the most important thing in situations like these.”

“Stop talking,” Skye says and taps her ear again, “Trip? Have you found Fitz?”

“I have. Where are you?” he answers and in the background there’s more gunfire and a terrified scream.

“On my way out. How many casualties?”

“Six so far. Are you okay?”

“Very much. I’ll see you on the other side.”

She taps her ear again and opens the door to the stairwell. She can hear the heavy footsteps of boots below them and groans. “This is not gonna be pretty.”

They take the stairs down anyway and Skye carefully tries to look down, shooting one man in the process. Bullets fly again, and Skye backs Jemma up against the wall, muttering a curse. Together they take down another three soldiers.

“What’s that?” Skye asks when they step over one of the men and points at the orange glow on the back of his neck. Skye takes out her phone and snaps a picture of it. Pain flashes through her shoulder when another gun is being fired and her body slams against the door beside her.

“Fuck.” She clenches her jaws together and shoots towards the sound.

“I got him,” Jemma says. “This way. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I can walk, it’s fine. Are we almost there?”

“Yes. It’s around the corner here.”

Skye groans, but holds up her gun anyway, ignoring the pain that seeps from her shoulder into her torso and down to her fingers. Adrenaline is already lingering in the corners, numbing the pain sufficiently. Three more armed men walk the hallway they need to cross, but Skye decides against firing this time. There are few bullets left and she’s injured. Jemma is a decent shot, but it would draw attention to them.

She takes three little spheres from her pocket and takes out her phone, starting the detonator before rolling them to the far end of the hallway.

“When they go off, we make a run for it. Get it?”

“Understood.”

Skye presses the button on her screen and the spheres blow, releasing white fog into the hallway. 

“Go.”

Jemma coughs, but steers them to the other end of the hallway and pushes open a door. They are outside and cold wind hits them.

“Very well.” Skye flags a cab and pushes Jemma in before her.

“You’re injured,” Jemma says with a surprised look when Skye gets in and her face distorts again.

“They nicked me in the shoulder. It’s fine, we need to get to Trip first. I have had worse.”

“Worse?”

“Yeah, Simmons, it comes with the job,” Skye says with half a smile and gives the driver an address.

When they arrive May, Trip and Fitz are already there. Trip is sitting at the table, reading through some files and May is putting more pictures up on a new whiteboard.

“Good to see you, miss Skye,” May says with a light smile and Skye nods.

“You’re shot,” Trip says when he looks up to meet her eyes and she nods again.

“Just one in the shoulder. It’s not too bad, but it hurts like a bitch.”

“You get shot too often…” Trip says and walks over to a cabinet where he picks up a first-aid kit. “Sit down.”

“This happens more often?!” Fitz and Simmons say together, the same look of horror spreads on their faces.

“More often than we’d like,” Skye says and laughs.

“Who are you people? Why did we get shot at?”

“We have some sensitive intel that tells us that someone wants you dead for some reason. Why?” May says and the two of them look at her as if she just smacked them over their heads with a brick.

“Someone wants us dead? Why?”

Skye sighs. “That’s what we’re trying to figure out. It has something to do with both of you.”

“Maybe work, but I don’t know why someone would want us dead over that,” Fitz says and rubs his forehead again, getting up to pace around the room.

It’s silent for a while, aside from Skye’s heavy breathing while Trip works to take the bullet out. Blood has trickled down her arm and seeped into her shirt, sticking it to her skin where Trip isn’t working.

“I’ll stitch myself, Trip. You leave nasty scars,” Skye teases when he’s finally done. She says it teasingly, but they both know that it’s true. He never went to medical school and they both learned the hard way that there wasn’t always a doctor available. Not having a doctor available meant improvising, and improvising means ugly scars. Skye has plenty of them.

“Let me do it,” Jemma offers before Trip can comment. She gets up and snaps on gloves before taking the tools from his hands. “I know I’m a scientist, but I have followed various seminars in emergency aid and I have done some medical training. Let me do it.”

“Fine, but if you leave a nasty scar I will find you Jemma Simmons,” Skye says and waves her hand, giving her the get go. Jemma laughs a little and sits down, precisely stitching the wound.

“It looks a lot better than what I would do, I can assure you that,” Trip says after a while when the only thing left to do is cleaning off the blood, something that Jemma is already tending to.

“When I got shot, May, I was snapping a photograph of the soldier’s suit. It showed some sort of logo.”

“Save yourself the search,” Jemma says when Skye takes out her phone and shows it to everyone. “That’s from Project Centipede.”

“Centipede?”

“It’s an ally of Hydra; S.H.I.E.L.D.’s enemy. It’s a long story, but they have been in an ongoing war for centuries. We thought the heads had been cut off, but apparently there are soldiers popping up here and there again. They want to take down S.H.I.E.L.D and if I’m being honest all the scientific research we’re doing gives us a big advantage in this battle. You wouldn’t want to get wrapped up in this, Skye. It’s a lot of trouble and it will cause a lot of bodies. Fitz and I are working on something that might just give us the overhand. Project Centipede wants to create super soldiers and we think we have found a way to neutralize them.”

“Is it finished?”

“No, and I don’t think anyone else but us can finish it,” Fitz says. He looks a bit pale.

“Then I suggest you go dark. I presume there’s a protocol for that?” May asks and quirks an eyebrow at the duo.

“Why don’t we just bring down Hydra?” Skye asks and Fitz snorts.

“Because that would be like taking down the Russian mafia. You don’t know who is Hydra. There are agents in S.H.I.E.L.D. who have been loyal for what feels like an eternity and then turned out to be working for Hydra all along. It’s scary, and it’s dangerous, and apparently we got mixed up in it. It started during the second world war with Peggy Carter and Captain America, and -”

“From the Avengers?”

“Yes, they put him on ice. But that’s beside the point. It has been an ongoing war that doesn’t just stop because you ask them nicely to leave us alone. The only thing we can do is abandon this project, but that would eventually lead to super soldiers that are incredibly difficult to beat.”

“We can try to get to the core of Centipede. There has to be a way to dissolve just that branch of the organisation.”

“Maybe,” May says, “I’ll pull some strings. See what I can do.”

Trip sets out to do some digging after a while, gathering information on the streets and with his connections at the police. He doesn’t return. He rarely comes in for work, he just shows up on the job.

May has also left, leaving Skye to hold the fort. It would be fine. Neither Centipede or Hydra could find them in here. They would have to search very, very hard. They didn’t even know who it was who intervened. For all they know they are just S.H.I.E.L.D agents getting in the way of their operations.

“I still don’t understand why you are helping us,” Jemma says and Skye shrugs with her uninjured shoulder. “We are just a concerned third party, that’s all. Tell me about the Avengers.”

Jemma raises an eyebrow, but does so anyway.

“I’ll drop you off, it’s no problem,” Skye says, opening the door to the passenger side of the car and climbing behind the wheel herself. She sees that Jemma wants to object, but one look makes her close her mouth and get in the car with her.

“Thank you.”

It’s been a week since Skye got shot while getting Jemma out of the mess she indirectly created for herself. They had spent most of their time in the safe house, working from there. They managed to develop the rest of their neutralizer and had left the job to S.H.I.E.L.D. itself to take down Centipede and shut down the threat. They had plenty of agents at their disposal, plenty of boots on the ground and more information than Skye and Trip could gather in such a short time-span. It was the logical thing to do. Skye stuck around because Jemma looked after her injured shoulder better than she could do herself and for some reason she liked her company. Usually she worked by herself, being the lone wolf she always was before May recruited her and paired her with Trip, but this time she likes the company.

“How’s your shoulder?” Jemma asks while Skye steers the car through the busy New York traffic and Skye glances at her.

“It’s doing better, thanks for stitching me up so neatly.”

Jemma smiles, but doesn’t say anything. Over the last week she had grown fond of the mysterious… agent? Soldier? Concerned third party member, probably. Skye was usually the one on baby-sitting duty and spend most of the time around the safe-house if she wasn’t busy saving other imminent numbers. The threats were little, some of which had to do with S.H.I.E.L.D. taking down Centipede. One involved a little girl who was about to accidentally shoot her mother.

“Do you want to come up?” Jemma asks when Skye parks in front of her apartment building, but she shakes no.

“It’s dangerous to get mixed up with someone like me, Jemma. As you can tell I get shot a lot, I jump into difficult situations, and I don’t work well with others.”

Jemma nods, although a flash of hurt crosses her face. “I get it.”

“I’ve seen your apartment, though. You didn’t peg me as the Dr. Who kind of type,” Skye says, nudging her gently and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Don’t be sad.”

Jemma’s eyes grow wide. “You have been in my apartment?”

“It was for research. Don’t worry, I didn’t steal anything,” Skye grins and Jemma rolls her eyes.

“Well, you’re very thorough.”

“I had to keep you safe; I had to know who I was dealing with.”

“Thank you for that, though, Skye. Really. I appreciate it.”

“Don’t mention it. You stitched me up. I guess we’re even.” Skye smiles when a light blush settles on Jemma’s cheeks.

“Take care now, and don’t get mixed up in funny business again.”

“Or you’ll find me?”

Skye grins and rolls her eyes. “I’ll have found you before you even know you’re in trouble. Just like this time. I just hope we won’t meet again under these circumstances.”

“Can we meet again, though, maybe?”

“Maybe someday.”

“Okay. That’s good enough for me,” Jemma nods and opens the door, ready to get out. Skye stops her with a hand on her wrist.

“I’ll see you on the other side, Jemma Simmons,” Skye says before leaning in to kiss Jemma’s cheek. They smile, and then she’s out the car and into the building, not looking back once. Her phone rings and Skye taps her ear.

“Yeah?”

“We got a new number. I’m sending you the coordinates,” May says and Skye swallows hard. She doesn’t really want to go. She wants to see the inside of Jemma’s apartment again, but the risk was too high. It’s a terrible idea, but she knows already that she’ll be dropping by her house or the lab soon enough, too curious, too invested.

“I’m on my way.”


	2. If You're a Mess; I'm a Disaster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sequel

"Skye, The Machine has sent us a new number," May says as soon as she opens the connection and she smiles to herself. Finally, The Machine hadn’t been telling them much over the last few days. Skye had been dying for some action; there were too much bullets in her mag, and it made her hands itchy. She was tempted to get in a bar fight just for the heck of it. 

"Send me the coordinates and I’ll be on my way. Who is shaking up New York City this time?" 

She starts the engine of the stolen vehicle she’s sitting in, obviously claiming it was borrowed, but puts it into drive anyway.

"It’s a number we’ve had before. It’s -" 

"Please don’t tell me it’s Grant Ward again, he always causes us so much trouble and to be honest I don’t even feel like shooting him anymore." 

"It’s Jemma Simmons." 

Skye’s vision blurs around the edges and she swallows hard. “I’m on my way.” 

"Do you need Mister Triplett’s help, Miss Skye?"

"I don’t know yet. I’ll focus on keeping her safe, it’d be nice if you two could figure out why she is being targeted once again."

"How can you be sure she’s not the perpetrator this time?"

"I just know."

She taps her ear and races through traffic to get to the other side of town as quickly as possible. She skips a few lights and nearly crashes the car, but it doesn’t matter. She needs a steady heartbeat. Breathe. Focus. She’s on her way. 60 beats per minute, hear the spaces between them. Calm your nerves. Breathe. Focus. 

As soon as she arrives she taps her ear again. 

"Do you have eyes inside, May?" 

"Not inside the apartment, but I managed to hack into the security feeds. Nothing seems to be out of the ordinary." 

"Anything else we know?" 

"Not yet. I’ll have to get back to you Miss Skye." 

She knows her way around here. She hadn’t had time or means to drop by since Jemma was targeted by Centipede. She had driven by once on her way to a number, but she still believed that Jemma was probably better off without a spy in her life. Although Jemma seemed to get into a lot of troubles of her own.

She forces the door and rides the elevator up and as much as Skye knows she might be having the advantage, it still feels like danger lurks around every corner.

Skye passes through hallways with her gun drawn and doesn’t lower it even when she’s standing in front of number 23.

As easy as it was to get entrance to the apartment before, as easy is it now. For a split second she contemplated just knocking, but it isn’t really her style. She walks in with her gun drawn and Jemma squeals when she sees her, her face softening when she recognizes Skye. 

"Skye!" 

"Hello, again. Be right back," Skye says and sweeps the house before locking all doors and windows. "There. I like your outfit." 

Jemma blushes when she realises she’s wearing only underwear and a loose oversized t-shirt. Her hair is up in a messy bun and she’s wearing fuzzy socks. She couldn’t look more harmless. She couldn’t look more attractive. 

"You too. All badass. Call it combat chique." Jemma laughs. 

"I’m not here to fool around, though, Simmons. You’re in danger again, so if you don’t mind I’m staying while my partners figure out what exactly is going on." 

"I’m on vacation!" Jemma throws up her hands and Skye chuckles. Bad guys didn’t care so much about vacations. "Fine, stay. Make yourself at home."

Skye has already taken her leather jacket off and hung it over one of the stools at the kitchen island. She draws a knife from her thigh and starts cutting one of Jemma’s apples in thin slices. It’s quiet, aside from the cutting sound and Skye’s chewing. 

Jemma taps her fingers on the counter top and puts the kettle on. Skye wants to know if that’s something she does when she’s nervous. Tea seemed to calm her down, she had made endless amounts of tea at the safe house, but Skye knows better than to ask. 

"It’s good to see you, though," Jemma says. She rests her forearms in the countertop, her fingers wrap around the mug and she smiles. "I didn’t think I’d ever see you again." 

Skye doesn’t know what she’s supposed to say, so she just slices her last wedge in half and chews it before answering. 

"There’s usually angry people with guns around me. I didn’t want you to get hurt."

"Yet here you are…"

"Your number was up." Skye shrugs as if it all makes total sense. 

"You could have send Trip," Jemma begins, but Skye shakes her head before she can speak any further.

"No. I want to protect you. I’m staying. I care about you. And Trip always does stupid things, I don’t even want to get started about that." 

A light smile tugs on the corners of Jemma’s mouth, but she doesn’t say anything. Skye puts the last piece of apple in her mouth and takes out her gun again, checking it over before placing it in front of her. 

"So why are you in trouble, Simmons? It better not be with Hydra again…"

Jemma’s eyes fly open, but she shakes her head. “I don’t think so, actually… I really don’t know who would want to target me now. I’m not working on covert assignments for the Director, and neither is Fitz…” 

"Ah, Fitz," Skye tries to laugh, but it’s not really successful, "what’s the deal between you two anyway? Is he your boyfriend?" 

Jemma raises her eyebrows and shakes her head. A light blush creeps to her cheeks and she shrugs. “Fitz? No… No, he wanted to. I mean a while back he told me he had feelings for me, but I don’t reciprocate them.” 

"Not? Fitz seems like a cool guy," Skye asks, but there’s an unfamiliar tug in her stomach. 

"Oh Fitz is the best, it’s not that. We’ve been friends for god knows how long, years, I just don’t like him like that.” Jemma smiles with tight lips and shrugs. “It’s hard. Fitz is great, but he’s just… Yes.”

Jemma taps her nails to the rim of her mug and stares into the liquid as if it would tell her the answer.

“Does it bother you, that he wants to be more than friends and you don’t, I mean?” Skye asks after a few seconds and rests her forearms on the countertop.

“Sometimes. I wish I could fancy him like that, but I just don’t. Next question, Skye. I hope this is leading to somewhere.”

"Alright, next question. But you don’t think Fitz has anything to do with the fact that you’re in danger?" 

"Fitz? No, he’s completely harmless. I can’t believe you even asked this." 

“Sorry.”

“Don’t worry. I just didn’t think I’d find myself in this situation… again,” Jemma sighs and rubs her eyes.

“I’m here. You’re safe with me.”

“I know, it’s not that.” Jemma smiles.

Skye pushes herself upright and sticks her gun in her waistband. There was one time where she had left it on the table, thinking it wouldn’t matter if she left it there for just the three seconds that she was away to grab something to drink. She thought wrong; it was the exact moment that she was being ambushed in one of her homes and was nearly killed for it. She knows that Jemma notices, but she doesn’t say anything, just when Skye didn’t say anything when she made tea.

Skye takes out her phone while walking to the windows and closing the curtains, looking out on the streets. Her stolen vehicle was around the corner, but she didn’t think the police would find it there. It was on the other side of the city from where she stole it after all.

“Who knows you live here?” Skye asks and glances over her shoulder. Jemma has hoisted herself up on the counter, leaning her shoulder against the wall. It’s a miracle she’s not cold, Skye thinks. She barely registers what Jemma tells her next; she’s too distracted. There’s that unfamiliar tug in her stomach again. Heat tingles down her spine and Skye swallows. She recognizes the feeling, but not as one of her own. Skye didn’t have feelings that often, actually, just anger. She was angry a lot and with Jemma around she didn’t feel that so much. She didn’t feel the urge to shoot things so much, she almost felt at ease, as if the world spinning on was perfectly fine.

“Skye?”

“Sorry, I… Never mind. What were you saying?”

“My close friends do… so that’s Fitz and Bobbi Morse. We have hidden files apartments; people shouldn’t be able to find out where we live. We are registered somewhere else.”

Skye’s phone rings and she takes it out of her pocket immediately. May’s initials flash on her screen and she taps her ear.

“Yeah?”

“It appears that Jemma is right… All S.H.I.E.L.D agents do have their locations hidden. However, I have managed to figure everything through a back door in the security. That said, not everyone can do it.”

“Could I do it?”

“Quite possibly, but that’s not the point. If Jemma would be in danger at her house, it would appear to be that someone who knows she lives there targeted her, or she has been followed home for a while now.”

“Shouldn’t her number have come up earlier?”

“Not necessarily. Mister Triplett is working on another number for me at the moment, Miss Skye, you’re on your own for a bit. You can always call in the help of our mutual friend Lady Sif, might that be necessary. I heard she was in town.”

“Thanks, May. I think I’m fine. Can you keep an eye on security around the block?”

“The Machine will let us know, Skye. Trust it.”

The line clicks and Skye takes out her earpiece to put it in her pocket.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Jemma asks when Skye runs a hand through her hand and keeps their gazes locked.

“I’m just trying to figure you out. This is going to sound strange, but as much as my boss thinks that you’re safe here; I’d like to move us to a more protected building if that’s okay with you. At least for tonight. We have a problem of perpetrators striking within the first twenty-four hours. It’s been two; there’s plenty of time left to move you around.”

“Are you staying?”

“Obviously,” Skye smiles, so Jemma nods and jumps up.

Their fingers brush lightly when Jemma walks past her into the adjacent bedroom and Skye holds her breath. She feels stupid, but tries to shake it off anyway. While Jemma changes in the bathroom and packs a bag with some clothes and toiletries, Skye calls Sif.

“Skye, hello. What can I do for my brave little colleague from New York?”

“I’m not little,” Skye grumbles, but she laughs anyway. “How’s D.C.?”

“Fine, actually. A lot less hectic than New York, I can tell you that. Business is going well, people will always have secrets to hide.” Skye can hear the amusement in her voice.

“Good to hear. Listen, I’m working on a case and was wondering if you could check with your… contacts if someone has ordered a hit?”

“Are you going to drag me into your bad girl shenanigans again, Skye?”

“I think I can handle this one, Sif. Don’t you worry your pretty little head.”

“I’ll look into it.”

“Thanks.”

“Say hi to May from me.”

Jemma turns up dressed and packed when the line clicks and smiles. There’s a light panic in her eyes and Skye swallows hard. She was right about the first twenty-four hours being critical. A broad man in a leather jacket pushes Jemma into the room with a gun in her neck. She takes tentative steps towards Skye, but never a centimetre too far.

“We’re taking the scientist,” the very familiar voice says and Skye immediately draws her gun. An unpleasant shiver trickles down her spine and she clenches her jaw. Hear the spaces between your heart. It hammers in her chest, but it doesn’t change how she holds her gun, how she watches them, how anger swirls through her veins.

“You are not going anywhere, Ward. What do you want with her?”

“She’s valuable to Hydra. We could always use a scientist that is familiar with aliens. Once we’re done with her, she’ll be happy to comply.”

He looks different from the last time she saw him. His beard is scruffy, his shirt nearly tears over his bulging muscles and his hair is shorter than ever. She had plenty of scars thanks to him, both physical and mental. He used to be a part of their team before he went rogue, before he went for the money, before he chose doing the bad thing over the good thing, simply because it seemed more convenient. He betrayed all of them, but Skye doesn’t think she’s ever been hurt like that. She trusted him.

“Seriously? First you send Centipede after her because she’s doing interesting stuff that could potentially dissolve the project, and now you’re coming after her with some mumbo jumbo?”

“Yes, Skye, and you’re gonna let me.”

“You’re gonna have to shoot me to do so, unless I shoot you first.”

Ward just grins stupidly and waves his gun at her. “Put it down and kick it to me, or I will fire three single rounds into that pretty little head of yours.”

“Shut up.”

He grits his teeth and pulls the trigger. The bullet grazes Skye’s shoulder lightly, but she barely winces when the prickling burn spreads over her skin. 

“Do it!” His demand booms through the room and Jemma cringes.

“Do it, Skye. There’s no way you’re getting a clear shot,” Jemma squeaks. She’s right, Skye knows that. There is no way. Ward is tall and broad, but there’s no way she’s getting a clear shot when he’s using Jemma as a human shield. A human shield from S.H.I.E.L.D.; she almost snorts at the irony.

Jemma swallows hard when she says, but gives her the faintest of nods. And then it clicks in Skye’s head; a diversion. She leans down slowly to put down the gun, but right when Jemma slams her elbow back into his stomach and dives away from him, Skye doesn’t waver a second, and fires three bullets. She never misses.

Ward immediately collapses to the ground, clutching his shoulder and grimacing at her. Blood is seeping through his fingers, but his vest caught two of them. Unfortunately. The blows still ring in her ears. “You know, I didn’t peg her as the type to fight.”

“You really should stop underestimating women, Ward. Disappointment is not looking good on you,” Skye snaps and shoots him an extra time in the knee before slinging Jemma’s bag over her shoulder and grabbing her hand.

“I’ll find you, you know.”

“If you’re smart, you’ll find a scientist who is actually willing to work for you,” Skye spits and smacks him in the face with the butt of her gun. He blacks out with a grunt. “Let’s go, Simmons.”

“They shouldn’t have sent a lamb to conquer a dragon. Ward is such a dummy, I swear to god,” Skye grumbles and cracks her neck before walking down the stairs with Jemma. With one hand she’s still aiming her gun; with her other she’s still holding Jemma’s.

When they get outside, there’s a car parked up front and Trip is hanging out of the window.

“Need a ride, ladies?” he grins and Skye rolls her eyes.

“Thanks, dipshit.”

Trip drives to The Loft, one of Skye’s not-so-secret hide-outs. It’s big, but not too big for one person. It’s luxurious and Skye practically never lives there. She only goes there when she’s off the job, in need of shelter or when there is someone she needs to hide.

Her partner has never been inside, no one has, actually. On the rare occasions that she would hook up with someone, she would always go with someone, instead of taking someone home. It was a different kind of action, but sometimes something she sought nevertheless.

Inside she dumps Jemma’s bag on the leather couch and activates the security systems. People need an ID-card to get inside, into a secured elevator, through two bombproof walls and in with another pin code before they could actually get inside. Skye thinks it might as well be the safest place in the city.

In the kitchen she grabs two beers from the fridge and rummages through the supplies for something to eat. Even if she didn’t spend much time here, she made sure there was someone with access who brought in fresh groceries every now and then.

“I hope you drink beer,” Skye says and twists the caps off when Jemma nods. Her face is still a bit pale and all joy has been wiped off her face.

Skye watches Jemma as she walks through the apartment and back into the kitchen. The walls still show the bricks, there’s scaffolding wood on the floor and too much furniture for the two of them. In the back is a big king sized bed with black sheets. The only adjacent room is the bathroom that has a heavy sliding door.

She sheds her coat and hisses when her graze starts bleeding again. The fabric of her long sleeved grey shirt has coloured dark, so she takes it off to tend to the wound properly.

“Are you okay?” Jemma asks, placing her hand on Skye’s forearm. Skye can’t help but notice Jemma’s eyes darting over her quickly, a light blush creeping to her cheeks.

“I have…”

“… had worse. I know.” Jemma smiles.

“I was gonna ask you the same thing actually,” Skye grimaces and takes an emergency kit from one of the cabinets, taking out antiseptic wipes and cleaning out the wound. It stings, but it’s not half bad.

“I’m fine, Skye. It’s alright.”

“You’re not used to people getting shot, nor almost being kidnapped. I would understand if you were upset, Jem.”

“I won’t have to stitch you up again, it seems. Here, let me,” Jemma says and takes the strips from Skye’s hand. She sticks them over the edges of the wound and puts a bandage over them. “All good.”

“You’re dodging my question. Are you really alright?”

Jemma shakes her head and places her trembling hands on the table. She tries to swallow away the tears, but they spill over anyway.

“I’m not made for situations like this,” Jemma whispers and Skye gets up, simply wrapping her arms around her and tangling her fingers in her hair at the base of her skull.

“It’s okay.”

“And you keep getting hurt for me, that’s not okay either.” Jemma’s voice quivers when she loops her arms around Skye’s waist, the warm bare skin feeling soothing under her hands. She swallows hard and buries her nose in Skye’s neck, breathing in her scent. She almost feels at ease, as if the world spinning on was perfectly fine.

“I’m just trying to keep you safe,” Skye mumbles, tightening her hold slightly.

Skye never was one to hug. She doesn’t like physical contact. She doesn’t shake hands. She doesn’t kiss complete strangers. But she likes it with Jemma. She likes the lingering touches, she likes the way she feels against her chest, she likes how her hands feel on her bare back. With Jemma it’s easy.

“I know…”

“Hey look at me.” Skye pulls back a little. She combs Jemma’s hair behind her ears with her fingers and cups her cheeks. “You’re going to be just fine, okay? You’re safe here,” Skye says, and even though Jemma nods her eyes say something else. She’s scared, and she has every right to be.

“I would kiss you now, but I don’t want to play on your emotions,” Skye says and strokes her thumbs over Jemma’s cheekbones. Jemma lets out a weak laugh and rolls her eyes.

“I can’t believe you’d want to kiss me. I mean look at me; I’m a mess.”

“I think you’re beautiful. And if you’re a mess, I’m a disaster.” That earns her a smile, the first genuine one of the afternoon and Jemma wipes at her nose.

“Sounds like we’d make a strange pair,” Jemma whispers, but before Skye can say anything else she draws her closer and kisses her. A soft moan falls from Jemma’s lips when Skye deepens the kiss and slips her hands under her shirt, dragging her nails over her hips slowly.

“Skye,” Jemma whispers when Skye’s lips trail down her neck. It’s almost too hard to form cohesive thoughts let alone being able to form them into words and say them. There are fireworks behind her eyelids, their skin tingles and there’s not enough. There’s not enough time. Not enough strength to draw each other closer. They just collide in every sense of the way.

“Mhm?”

“Take me to bed…”

“Are you sure?” Skye asks, biting down lightly and Jemma laughs.

“If I wasn’t, I am now.”

Skye grins and shakes her head, planting a chaste kiss to Jemma’s lips. 

“You’re an idiot.”

Jemma squeals when Skye picks her up in one swift motion and carries her to the bed, laying her down gently.

“Look at you, being all badass, but still so careful.” Jemma runs her hands through Skye’s hair and wipes away a smudge of eyeliner with her thumb. “It’s adorable.”

“I wouldn’t want to break you,” Skye teases, poking Jemma in the sides while laying down next to her, propping herself up on her elbow.

“I am not fragile, Skye!” Jemma argues, swatting at Skye’s hip.

“And I’m not adorable. Shut up,” Skye laughs and rolls on top of her to kiss her.

The ringing of a phone wakes Skye from the trenches of her sleep and she shoots upright. She’s naked, and she’s tired. But a good tired. She takes one of the sheets and crawls out of bed to get to her phone.

“Yeah?”

“Have you found out more, Skye? Or were you too busy having sex with the number?” May sounds amused, but Skye just clenches her jaws.

“I think she’s being targeted by a group of mercenaries under command of Grant Ward. Hydra wants her because she’s a skilled scientist. I haven’t quite figured out how to get them to leave her alone, though.”

“I’ll send mister Triplett and Lady Sif to shake things up a little. You take care of her, Skye, if she really is that important.”

Skye hangs up and removes the battery from her phone before turning back to the bed again. Jemma has slept through the commotion and Skye smiles. In the early light that falls from the windows high up the wall she almost has an angelic look to her.

She quickly puts on a bra and one of her work-out shorts, throwing a change of underwear onto the foot of the bed with an oversized shirt before starting the coffee machine and breakfast.

Behind her she can hear Jemma waking up. She hears the stir of her body, the low groan when she stretches and feels around the mattress, how she sits up and clutches the sheets around her so very naked body. She can hear Jemma getting dressed, either in her own clothes that are discarded around the room or the things she laid out for her, and the soft padding of her feet when she walks over.

“Hey,” Jemma whispers when she wraps her arms around Skye’s waist and buries her nose between her shoulder blades.

“Slept well?” Skye asks while turning around and presses a kiss to Jemma’s forehead. She nods and sighs.

“What are we going to do about that guy and Hydra?” Jemma asks when Skye lets her go to scoop the eggs and bacon onto the plates and to pour them coffee and tea.

“May sent Trip and Sif to check out the threat, scare the living shit out of them, that sort of thing.” Skye grins.

Later that morning they get a call that the problem seems to have been resolved after the firing of a few bullets and some typical ‘negotiations’. Skye already knows that the negotiation probably required Trip and Sif to sell out some other scientist to Hydra, but she’s pretty certain that person wouldn’t do as much harm as Jemma. She was talented, but that talent shouldn’t fall into the wrong hands.

“You’re free to go, Jem,” Skye says with a grin while pulling a clean shirt over her head and takes her gun apart to clean it.

“And you?”

“What about me?” Skye asks, quirking an eyebrow at her.

“What are you going to do?” Jemma rests her hands on the back of a chair and bites the inside of her cheek.

“This time I’d like to stick around, if you don’t mind. I mean, I’m not the type of girl to be home every night after work and I can’t promise you that I won’t get shot again, but I will bring you steak, and make you tea in the morning. And I promise you that I will keep you safe.”

“As well as the rest of New York, at the same time.” Jemma laughs and moves to kiss Skye on her lips again.

“Of course.”

“I can live with that. Can I stay here for a little while longer, though? I don’t really want to go home yet.”

Skye’s phone rings again, cutting their conversation short, and she taps her ear. “May.”

“We have a new number, I’d like you to come to the Library. Everything alright with miss Simmons?”

“Perfect. I’ll be right there.”

Skye taps her ear again and assembles her gun.

“A new number?” Jemma asks with a light smile and Skye nods.

“Stay for as long as you like, Jemma. I’ll return here tonight, so if you want to stay today that’s fine too. I got to go now, though. May wants to see me.”

“Be safe, though.”

Skye kisses her soundly and grabs her leather jacket. “Of course. I’ll see you on the other side.”


End file.
